Victão on Corinthians extension, veterans helping youth settle | OneFootball

Amid the changes made by Corinthians for the 2026/27 basketball season, Victão was one of the names chosen to continue the work developed in recent years. About to begin his third season with the club, the power forward explained his decision to remain at Parque São Jorge, assessed the sport’s new financial moment, and spoke about the responsibility of experienced players in welcoming youngsters promoted from the youth ranks.

Corinthians underwent a restructuring after an approximately 44% reduction in the department’s budget. The resources allocated to the sport fell from R$11.8 million to R$6.6 million, a scenario that resulted in changes to the roster. Despite the departures, the club kept part of last season’s structure, and Victão remained one of the team’s leaders.

Photo: Beto Miller / Corinthians

During a press conference held at Neo Química Arena, at the presentation of the 2026/27 roster, the No. 10 said that the possibility of continuing to take part in the project’s growth weighed heavily in his decision.

“Without a doubt, the biggest motivation for staying is to keep building this story. As Elio (Elinho) said during our conversations, I’m heading into my third season at the club, and every year we’ve managed to take another step forward. First, Corinthians had never made it past the first round of the NBB playoffs — we did that. Then, we earned a place in an international competition, something the club hadn’t played in for a long time. So, we’ve been climbing step by step,” the No. 10 began in the press conference at Neo Química Arena.

Victão sees progress in Corinthians’ project

For the power forward, keeping part of the roster helps build an identity within Corinthians basketball. Victão also mentioned the demands made by Elinho, one of the group’s most experienced players, and linked his contract renewal to the goal of establishing a winning culture at the club.

“Elio demands that from us a lot, and I think we’ve improved in every season. The renewal is about all of that: the pursuit of building a winning culture at Parque São Jorge. Montanha himself (the department director) highlighted the fact that the club renewed with most of the roster from one year to the next. We’re on the right path. Sometimes the process may seem a little slower than we’d like, but I’m sure we’re improving and that, very soon, our time to lift a trophy will come,” he said.

The new financial reality led to a smaller squad, and Corinthians began the season without foreign players. Even so, Victão pointed out that the size of the investment does not, by itself, determine sporting performance.

The player used the team’s recent Paulista Championship campaign as an example. Even with a smaller budget, Timão reached the state tournament semifinals, where they were eventually eliminated by Mogi.

“It’s important to clear up all these doubts and talk about everything we’ve been through, but the essential thing is to understand our path and the project we’re following. People talk a lot about budget cuts or about us not having foreign players, but we went into the market and the players who arrived came to genuinely strengthen our team. You have to understand that investment is not always an exact metric: in the last two seasons we had a bigger budget and didn’t even get past the first stage of the Paulista Championship. This time, with a smaller budget, we played in the semifinal and fought until the end for a spot in the title match,” he said.

In Victão’s view, the answer to the current scenario lies in the work done every day and in the squad’s commitment. The power forward also included the use of youth players as an important part of that process.

“Financial value alone guarantees nothing. The most important thing is to trust our daily work. We have a group of hardworking, dedicated players who give themselves in training and want to win wearing the Corinthians jersey. Besides that, the integration of our youth players brings growth for them and for all of us. Knowing where we want to go and staying focused on hard work, we’ll certainly achieve great things,” he added.

Experience also becomes a tool for developing youth players

The involvement of young players gained space in Corinthians’ planning for the season. Seven athletes promoted from the youth ranks joined the main squad, among them power forward Lucas Cardoso, known as Lukinhas, and center Luiggi.

The presence of the youngsters also changes the role of the more experienced players. Little by little, Victão is taking on a position similar to the one held by players who helped him at the start of his career. Among the role models mentioned by the No. 10 was Elinho himself.

“I think it’s a really good thing. I’m getting older too, there’s no way around it, but it’s great to be able to share a little of everything I’ve learned. I even joke that, next to Betinho and Elinho, I end up feeling younger, remembering the days when I was in the youth ranks. I was a kid when I played with Elinho, and he was one of the people I learned the most from about this role of welcoming others and sharing what you know,” he said.

Victão understands that the exchange between different generations is part of a natural process within sports. After receiving guidance when he was still taking his first steps in professional basketball, the player now tries to play the same role with the athletes who are beginning to earn space in Corinthians’ senior squad.

“Today, I just try to give back a little of everything they did for me. Sports are a cycle: when you’re younger, there’s always that experienced athlete who comes over to give you some tips, advise you, and help you. As time goes by, you find yourself doing exactly the same thing for the kids who are arriving. It’s the famous ‘chain of good’ — our mission is not to let that chain break, passing the learning forward so things work out for everyone,” he explained.

The welcoming, however, does not mean the youngsters will be spared the team’s traditional initiation pranks. According to Victão, the busy schedule at the start of the season only postponed the moment.

“With this super hectic start to the season, the boys have gotten away with it for now. They’re playing more, making the most of their opportunities, but the rookie initiation has to happen and it will happen. They’ve already been warned!” the player joked.

Victão recalls a packed Wlamir Marques gym

In addition to the continuity of the work on the court, Victão highlighted the growing connection with the fans as one of the standout aspects of the team’s recent journey. The power forward recalled Game 3 of the 2025/26 NBB semifinal, when 8,171 fans followed Corinthians at Wlamir Marques Gymnasium.

The crowd recorded for that game was the largest for Corinthians basketball since the sport was reactivated in 2018. For Victão, the experience even changed the players’ perception of the scale of support from the Fiel.

“It’s almost absurd! We thought we already had an idea of what Corinthians was. Elio even used that example from when we play away from home: we go play in Mogi or Minas and there are 40, 50 Corinthians fans making more noise than the home crowd. By experiencing that kind of thing, we imagined we understood the size of this fan base,” he said.

“But the semifinal proved that we were completely wrong. Seeing more than 8,000 people in the gym made us understand what Corinthians really is. Just remembering it gives me chills. We have several photos saved. Personally, I think our gym is one of the most beautiful in Brazil, and seeing it absolutely packed was a surreal experience for all of us. Only those who were inside could feel the true magnitude of the Corinthians fan base,” he concluded.

Corinthians’ first international challenge of the season will be in the South American Basketball League. Timão debuts on October 9 against CD Jorge Guzmán, and will also face Nacional of Uruguay and Regatas of Argentina in the group stage, to be played in Ecuador.

After the continental competition, the team coached by Jece Leite will turn its attention to the Novo Basquete Brasil (NBB). Corinthians’ debut is scheduled for October 17 against Mogi, away from home.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.